But the starting price for the Latitude 10 tablet with that added security – it doesn’t come standard on the base model – is $779, only $120 cheaper than the Microsoft Surface Pro, which comes with a full keyboard for typing up long clinical notes without tapping on the screen.

“Software vendors have been waiting for Windows 8 tablets to become available before they move in that direction,” says Dell’s Chief Medical Officer Andy Litt. “So it’s a bit of chicken-or-egg thing. Now that the tablets are out, it will drive change on the software vendors’ part.”

To learn more about the Latitude 10 tablet or to read the EHR Intelligence report in full, click here.